[Phil R.]

When I told a black friend I hardly ever see any black people hiking, camping or out in the mountains in general, he replied “Black people aren’t trained to waste time.” What does he mean by this?

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Name : Phil R., Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Age : 32, City : Denver, State : CO, Country : United States, Occupation : Senior Technician (Electronics), Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Dan31702]

I can only hazard a few guesses as to why African Americans don’t take advantage of Colorado’s outdoor recreational opportunities. First, you might not see many blacks doing ‘outdoorsy’ things in Colorado because there aren’t many blacks in Colorado. Aurora is a stable, racially integrated middle class suburb of Denver, but most of the Denver area is lily-white. Secondly, I would guess that the vast majority of blacks in Denver/Aurora are ‘transplants’ to the area, moving from areas that don’t have the mountains and ski resorts and trails and so on. They move here because of the booming economy – I’ve never met any black people who moved here for the mountains or powder. (I would imagine that the same thing would be true of Hispanics and Asians – they want a better life, regardless of fourteeners and singletrack.) However, I know many whites who have moved here specifically for the mountains – they voluntarily gave up jobs in Minneapolis, Des Moines and Kansas City just to be closer to the slopes.

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Name : Dan31702, Gender : M, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : White/Caucasian, Religion : Unitarian, Age : 33, City : Denver, State : CO, Country : United States, Occupation : Professional, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Rain30212]

First, your friend may have been being sarcastic with you. However, his remark has a kernel of truth in it. If you’re poor, you’re more interested in keeping a roof over your head than recreational activities. The reason that you may not see many black people participating in these activities is that blacks are a minority group and only a percentage will have the money or inclination to participate in these activities.

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Name : Rain30212, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Methodist, Age : 44, City : Dallas, State : TX, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Rikki]

This is a generalization that is incorrect. Just because you don’t see it doesn’t mean it isn’t true. Being that people designated as black people are a part of the human race, their interests and hobbies are as varied as any other group of people. I camp at least once a month in warm weather and see other “black” people camping in numbers comparable with their frequency in the population. This is the same as saying “blacks” don’t ski, when they very clearly do.

Camping, once you have the gear, is one of the most inexpensive pastimes you can have (aside from just walking in the park).

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Name : Rikki, Gender : F, Race : Black/African American, Age : 50, City : Cleveland, State : OH, Country : United States, Education level : 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[CC19339]

There’s more than a grain of truth in the comment of Phil R.’s friend, but “not trained to waste time” distorts the reality. I believe Phil’s friend may be referring to a cultural reality that is not “recreationally oriented.”

It’s been my general observation that white American culture has an appreciation for fun and “idle pleasures” like drinking at singles bars, sun-bathing, joy-riding, etc., that is not enjoyed in black American culture. I’ve felt that the white American preoccupation with pleasure is a carryover from the sense of entitlement that historically was bred into the Anglo upper classes and which necessitated the English servant class and eventually the African slave trade.

On the other hand, black Americans (being forcibly divorced from their cultural roots of their African pasts) trace our cultural reality largely, where not exclusively, to the Euro-African slave relationship, wherein the African and later the African-American reality did not include a sense of “pleasure” or an entitlement to anything even resembling recreation. Therefore, Phil’s friend’s statement, made just three generations post de jure emancipation, is not surprising. My 77-year-old mother has never taken a “vacation” in her life, has associated a “need” for a vacation with weakness and has inculcated a sense of guilt in me when I take a “mental health” day from the job.

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Name : CC19339, Gender : F, Sexual Orientation : Straight, Race : Black/African American, Religion : Baptist, Age : 44, City : Northern New Jersey, State : NJ, Country : United States, Occupation : Attorney, Education level : Over 4 Years of College, Social class : Middle class, 

[Marcus-P]

I think that your friend may have overreacted. I volunteer with black children form the inner-city and take them on nature outings, including camping. They love the outdoors. They have never been encouraged to partake in these activities, they’ve probabbly been segregated from popular public recreation sites. It is really no different how black children pursue basketball and other sports as an outdoor hobby, or the countless hours black youth (and adults for that matter) spend in activities like listening to rap music, going to night clubs, and those sorts. Not that all black people do this, but not all white people camp or participate in any outdoor activities either.

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Name : Marcus-P, City : Orange Park, State : FL, Country : United States, 

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